Humanity's Inhumanity
by NineTailedHollow9009
Summary: Harry Potter, trained by the shadow of the Hero of Time, and Shawn Helprin, a mysterious young boy, come face to face with an unspeakable legend. A legend not seen since the beginning of Hogwarts, and what does Majora have to do with all of it?
1. Chapter 1

**Humanity's Inhumanity**

Pipes clanged against the ground and against each other as a body crashed into them, seemingly falling from the darkened night sky. The black clothed figure reached a pale white hand out and pushed himself up, groaning all the while. This was an unexpected twist of events, instead of being banished back into that din-forsaken dark mirror, he ended up in what appeared to be a… rundown scrapyard. His ruby red eyes scanned his surroundings, taking in the unfamiliar setting. Obviously he wasn't in Hyrule anymore, but this wasn't the dark world either, that place was more like nightmares and bloodied walls. He took a deep breath and sighed as he took a second to think about how he got here.

His other half, _Link_, had left his bloodied and battered body in the depths of the Water Temple. It was an intense fight, himself having sustained grievous injuries, but not without dealing some back to the Goddess' Chosen. In the end though, he prevailed over his shadow self, thrusting his sword through the white haired warrior's chest, piercing where his heart should be. He lay in the mirror-like water for hours, waiting for something.

"You've failed me." A great orange haired man towered over the shadow man, his dull yellow eyes bore through him, as if he could see his soul.

_If I had a soul_

"Sorry to disappoint." The shadow man stated, his voice clear of emotion. His eyes followed the green skinned man as he walked around the floating man.

"You're useless to me now." He stated simply, the evil smirk he wore currently not present on his calm demeanor.

"And what would you like me to do now? Beg? If so, you'd be severely disappointed, Ganondorf." The man spat at him, hocking a glob of spit and blood on his unmarred boots.

"I'm… firing you, you could say." Ganondorf murmured softly. "It seems as if I have to be the one to beat him." He pulled out a mirror with a blackened glass and held it over the prone form of the defeated shadow man. A huge crack marring the glass' surface threateningly.

"After all, only a Triforce bearer could hope to defeat another." He held the mirror over the man and let it go. A flash of dark light, and the only person left was the orange haired man.

That was how he got here he guessed. The crack in the dark mirror interfered with the original destination and somehow he ended up here. He stumbled and had to steady himself against a beaten down car. Black smoke left his rapidly healing wounds in little wisps. Shaking his head, he stood back up to his full height and left the scrapyard.

Only to be stopped as a bunch of children chased another into the scrapyard. It didn't look like they were playing a game, the one kid had nothing but fear etched on his face. The shadow being took a moment to decide if he should intervene. He probably should, but he didn't really want to. On one hand he would be able to vent his rage on the bully, but although he would be performing a _good_ deed. He sighed as he walked after the kids muttering about having to do the 'Hero's' job.

He found the kids quite easily. The messy haired one was cowering in between two cars and the fat one was having difficulty for the child. The shadow man walked towards the children, his footsteps light against the grey cement. He reached out an arm and grabbed the fat child by the scruff of his neck. He lifted him up to his eye level and simply stated. "Your mom's a whore."

The fat kid stared at the man blankly. "What's a whore?"

"…never mind." He dropped the kid roughly and walked past the flabbergasted children.

"How d'you know my mum?" He blinked owlishly at the strange man. His mother would never talk to a freak like this. He couldn't even dress properly! Unlike the freak he was trying to bully.

"I fucked the whore's ass last night. Now get your asses out of here." He growled dangerously. His patience for this moronic child was wearing thin. The fat tub of lard seemed to sense the threat to his being and hightailed his way out of the scrapyard, his friends chasing after him confused and frightened about what just happened.

The black-haired boy slowly clambered out from between the two cars and stood in front of his savior. His baggy clothes seemed to be too big for him now that the shadow man took a proper look at him. His skin was sickly looking, and his hair reached his shoulders in raven black locks. The child's emerald-green eyes seemed to be piercing into his non-existent soul.

"Thank you sir, for helping me. No one has ever tried to help me before." He shyly smiled at the white-haired male.

"Yeah…" He sighed. "Wasn't really helping you as much as I was not helping them." The small boy frowned at his words, but decided to disregard them. This man was nice, he wore strange clothes, but anyone who helped him couldn't be all bad.

"My name is Harry, Harry Potter." Harry brightly told his savior. At this bit the man bit back a frown. What was his name? Did he even have a name? No, he didn't, he was nothing really, nothing but a shadow of the Hero.

"Call me Shadow."

* * *

><p>"Shadow? That's a weird name. Why's your name Shadow?" The kid excitedly chirped. Shadow gave a soft groan in annoyment. He and the kid had been travelling for a few days now, they had just reached a forest and were a few hours travel into it, and the kid would not just <em>shut up<em> for Din's sake!

Harry decided he would follow the shadow like a friggen _bloodhound_ after he saved him from his fat-ass of a bully. It took the pathetic child following the shadow man for about two days before he finally gave up and decided to take the young boy with him. The part that annoyed him the worst was when the little shit decided to start asking questions when he didn't have the answers.

"Where are we going? Why is your skin white? Why do you have red eyes? Why were you named Shadow? What's that thing you're wearing? Why is it black? Why do you wear tights? Are the tights? They look kinda like long johns."

It was by Din the most infuriating thing he had ever encountered, and he had to deal with Ganondorf daily commanding him around. Until the green skinned bastard stuck him in the Water Temple to wait for the Goddess' _Chosen_. God how he hated both of them.

The shadow finally snapped and spun around, lashing out to grip the boy's throat, pinning him against a tree. "I'm a twisted distortion, I'm nothing but a broken reflection of the _chosen, _filled with hatred and anger towards the coward I was born from. I don't exist in this world. I am a shadow." He growled dangerously. "Now. Stop. Asking. Questions!" He let go of the frightened child's neck and let the boy fall ungracefully into a heap on the forest floor.

_And that's all I'll ever be_

He was nothing but a shadow, a ghost of the Hero of Time, the Goddess' Chosen One. He hated that. He wanted to be his own person. Shadow brushed his white locks out of his eyes, _his all too familiar strands of hair_. The shadow man clenched his leather covered hands, his fingertips turning somehow whiter than before.

The shadow man shook his head as if to clear his thoughts and continued to walk on. "Let's continue." He wanted to find some cover before the sun came up.

Harry quickly clambered to his feet and rushed after the rapidly retreating shadow, not deterred from following the grey haired man.

Glowing yellow eyes followed them from a short distance.

The shadow man stopped abruptly and Harry almost ran into him. With a confused look on his face he opened his mouth to speak- only to have the shadow hold his hand out and prevented the boy from voicing his thoughts. He raised his hand to his lips in a shushing manner. The shadow man held out his right hand, where dark smoke began to amass and form a sword, a black version of the Master Sword. He raise his left arm up and again, smoke collected and assembled itself into a black shield with a shiny reflective surface.

Harry's jaw hit the floor, his mouth wide open in shock and awe. "That's amazi-"Only to be shushed again by the dark entity. He frowned at the older man and was about to say something when a deep growl reached his ears. Harry's face paled and he turned around only to see a hideous looking _thing_.

It appeared to be a lion at first, its once proud golden coat now patchy and dirty, but it couldn't be a lion, for a giant scorpion tail resided on its behind, looming ominously over its back with a strong acid dripping and causing the forest floor to hiss dangerously. The thing that shocked Harry the most, was not the body nor tail of the lion, but what the lion had for a face. A man's face, twisted in hideous agony glared at them, most likely for trespassing upon its precious territory.

The monstrous sight didn't faze the shadow man in the slightest as he stared down the ugly creature. He'd seen worse before he was separated from his host.

"M…. Mine….. My…. For… FOREST!" The man screamed in anguish as he stampeded towards the mismatched duo, scorpion tail flinging around wildly. The shadow man pushed Harry hard to the side and held up his shield, bashing it into the Manticore's face. The scorpion tail shot forwards, intent on piercing the shadowy warrior in front of it only to have the tip sliced off.

The Manticore screamed in unbridled pain and swiped its giant claws at him, only to miss as he jumped on the quickly moving paw and swiped his sword smoothly, cutting through the paw and causing blood to spray from the stump of an arm. The monster was furious and slammed its scorpion tail into the gut of the shadow man and knocked him over, causing the air to leave his shadowy lungs. The lion-like creature ambled over to the downed man and laid its claw over the shadow's throat.

"Stop!" Cried Harry. "Leave him alone!" He couldn't stand it! His savior was just beaten and was about to die! He ripped a good sized stick off a felled tree that was destroyed from the giant monsters scorpion tail. The stick proved to be useless as the Manticore just swiped his only front paw at the young child, carving his chest open and giving the shadow being time to get back up.

The shadow man took the distraction Harry provided and plunged his sword into the back of the monsters head, killing it almost instantly. Not far from the Manticore, Harry lay on the uneven forest floor, bleeding out.

The shadow man sighed and picked up the unconscious child. He placed his finger over the wound and shadow threads sewed the Harry's wounds together. There, now the child wouldn't die.

He laid the child down and walked over to the dead Manticore's corpse. With one swing of his shadowy sword he cut one of its sharp claws off and made it vanish in a wisp of smoke.

The shadow man roughly picked up the child and tossed him over his shoulder.

_Maybe I should train this pathetic kid_

He slowly walked off, leaving the dead carcass behind. Crows flying overhead swooped in and began their violent and bloody feast.

* * *

><p>Harry woke up with a pained gasp. It felt like he was trampled by a herd of buffalo, feeling his stitched up chest, he guessed he wasn't too far off. That thing last night had to have been a Manticore. He read about them in a fantasy book in the library about a year ago, but how could such a thing exist? He shook his head to clear his thoughts.<p>

He looked around and saw the shadow man attempting to make a fire but failing miserably. Harry took a deep breath and noticed the area around him smelt coppery, it was a smell he knew well from living with his relatives.

_Blood_

He looked around for the source of blood, other than his own chest of course. He noticed a small pile of dead skinned rabbits, enough for the both of them, beside the shadow man. So that's where it was coming from so strongly. He smiled softly. So the seemingly emotionless man, except for the one time he snapped, did have the ability to think about others, even if it was only food. Usually it was Harry who hunted the rabbits and other small wildlife for food for the both of them. He had experience from when his Uncle wouldn't feed him and kicked him out of the house, it was the only reason he survived this long.

He tried to get up but his chest flared in pain. Harry fell back onto his back and hissed in frustration. The shadow man finally took notice of Harry's awareness of the world upon his hiss.

"Lay down, rest." The shadow man commanded the raven haired boy, his voice booking no argument. "What happened to me?" He tilted his head sideways, in a questioning manner. The shadow man leveled his ruby red eyes at Harry. "You attempted to attack a monster with a stick." He pointed at the giant sewed up wound. "And it left you with that."

Harry looked back down at the giant claw marks and smiled widely. "It looks pretty epic right?" The shadow scoffed at that, his uncaring expression changing into a small frown.

"Wounds are not epic. They are nothing more than a reminder of the mistakes you made. Nothing more, nothing less." The shadow stated unemotionally. He turning to gaze into the newly started fire. Shadow grabbed two rabbits and began to roast them over the fire after piercing them with a sharpened stick. Harry looked at the motionless form before deciding to voice his thoughts.

"Can you train me to use a sword like you?"

Since he saw the shadow man face the Manticore, he had a flaming desire to be strong like him. The shadow man faced the thing like it was nothing, until it finally got a lucky shot in. He wanted to be strong, like the shadow in front of him. Strong enough so the Dursley's wouldn't ever be able to boss him around again. Harry clenched the cloth of his pants tightly and unwaveringly stared at the dark soldier in front of him slowly roasting rabbits.

"No." The shadow stated simply. He tossed a cooked rabbit onto Harry's stomach, who groaned in slight pain. "But I can show you how to kill." The Dark World inhabitant scrutinized the young boy in front of him. "Eat. We begin when you can move."

* * *

><p>It was two days later when Harry's wounds healed completely, leaving behind three large scars stretching across his chest. It was peculiar how fast the child healed, mused the shadow being. He assumed it was due to some internal magic at work. Link, and therefore himself, were the same way. Anyways, it was time to impart his fighting skills unto the young child who stood before him.<p>

"Mental discipline." He started. "Is a big part of being able to fight, if you do not have the mental discipline required to fight, to take a life, you will not go far down this path. I will teach you how to wield your sword as if it is a part of yourself. I won't teach you combat styles or katas, simply, how to become one with your weapon. I will teach you how to interchange fighting styles smoothly." The shadow man took a deep breath and continued his speech. "This won't be easy. I'll beat you into the ground over and over. I'll make you want to give up. Fighting isn't kind and neither am I."

"Are you ready for this?" He asked in a dead whisper. "To learn how to kill?"

"Yes."

The shadow man stared into Harry's determined eyes, analyzing him, judging him. "First you learn how to control your inner magic." The shadow stated unemotionally, carefully gauging Harry's reaction to the statement. He was not unsurprised by Harry's reaction.

Harry had lost his determined composure and looked at the shadow entity gobsmacked. "I have magic? I thought magic didn't exist! How do you know I have magic?" He questioned him when he regained his composure after a couple minutes.

The shadow raised a leather clad hand to silence the boy. "Yes magic is real." He said in that same damn _unemotional _tone of his. "And yes, you do have magic, how else would your wounds heal so fast?" He sat down with a soft sigh, crossing his legs and placing his hands on his knees. "Now sit like me, close your eyes, and find the magic inside your very being. You'll know when you've found it."

Harry sat down in a closely similar position that the shadowy being was sat in. He closed his eyes and concentrated on finding the hidden power within himself.

_Darkness, nothing but Darkness. He turned around, scanning his surroundings. Darkness, more Darkness. _

_A faint flash. He ran towards it. The everlasting Darkness seemed to suffocate him as he continued to run. It almost became too much, he couldn't breathe, his consciousness was rapidly fading. _

_Suddenly a dark light flashed again and banished the darkness away from his being. Harry could see it, his core. It was black, and pulsated purple ever so slowly._

_It floated above a cracked concrete flooring. The surrounding walls covered in graffiti and chipped, as if it was centuries old. Moss covered the same concrete above him and hung down overhead. _

_Harry walked up to his gloomy looking magic core. Suddenly stopping "What do I do with it now?" He wondered aloud. Harry took a few moments to think his options through before reaching out and grabbing the thing._

_Or at least he was going to grab it. As soon as he touched it, his hand started sinking into the darn thing. He tried to rip his hand free but it was all in vain as the orb pulled him into it. _

"_Come the heck on!" He cursed loudly, grabbing his arm and attempting to wrench it free. "I did not sign up for this!" His core pulsated one last time, this time almost completely lighting up the room before the Darkness quickly engulfed it again, the orb finally succeeding in absorbing Harry._

"Agh!" Harry awoke with a start. His head hurt, like a lot, and his heart was racing. "Wasn't I just absorbed by that weird orb thing?" He asked aloud. A dark chuckle rang out behind him, startling him once more. "That tends to happen when one finds their magical core." He chuckled again.

**My brain is infested by story ideas… Don't blame me for all these stories I've started and haven't continued which I will begin to do after I upload this chapter… Blame my brain!**

**I hope you all enjoy this idea! Rate and Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Humanity's Inhumanity**

Four years had passed since the shadow man took Harry under his wing. Four years since Harry took up a blade and began his new lifestyle. In four years' time, Harry had changed a lot. He became more like the shadow he lived alongside, who trained him in the art of killing. Harry didn't change just mentally, but he changed physically as well, other than growing. He didn't know why his hair started to become white and interlaced with his black locks. He couldn't explain how his formerly tan skin turned a pale white. Harry suspected it was something to do with his contact with the Dark World Inhabitant. He was just glad his emerald-green eyes stayed the same, if becoming a little more dull and intimidating due to his training.

Harry was now eleven years old and ready to take his last test to completing his training. If he passed he would become a swordsman in every right like the shadow man, if he failed… well the world would still run if Harry wasn't alive anymore. He slung his sword around him so it dangled behind him and grabbed his shield in his left hand, he patted dust from his black tunic, similar to the one his mentor wore, and was ready to set out once again.

Shadow had sent Harry out three days ago to track down and kill a beast like the Manticore he killed years ago. For some reason that he wasn't sure of, magical creatures kept ambushing or following after the duo around in an attempt to kill and eat them. Harry assumed that it was due to the magical cores inside their bodies and the mythical creatures could sense it. It still didn't explain why they didn't attack him when he was still living on Privet Drive, but he didn't really care as they just provided him with more experience in his skills and abilities.

This was the first time he would actually be hunting down one of these magnificent creatures. The ones he usually fought tracked him or Shadow stalked them and directed them towards the beginner swordsman. Most of the time they were small fry, little things like the small blue creatures with an iron-clad grip that traveled in groups and had almost managed to break his arm. The tougher ones they came across were the ones the shadow man dealt with. But now it was time for Harry to grow up, to fight one of the stronger monstrosities by himself.

"-eak! Get your skinny arse over here and make breakfast! Hurry up or its lashes and a month in the cupboard boy!" A very familiar voice screamed out at him, a certain voice he hadn't heard in over four years. A whale of a man stomped out of the forest cover, red face fuming red contrasting against his thick grey mustache. "Boy! You heard me! Get to it or its the belt for you!"

Harry stood motionless, his face void of expression as he was trying to comprehend how his uncle found him, and _why_ he wanted to find him in particular. The only logical explanation for this was that it was some type of magical animal that could take the shape of things familiar to him.

"That's it boy! Take your shirt off and turn around!" the tub of lard ordered, causing Harry to flinch and grip the sword handle. He had faced worse than this, he wouldn't be defeated by his past fears.

_Fear_

Harry shook his head, a small smile gracing his features. That was the answer to what this thing was, it took the form of what you feared. Harry's smile turned into a smirk. Looks like he found a creature worthy enough to be his test.

The fat man, sensing the child didn't fear him anymore, disappeared and in its place floated what looked to be a blob of black sludge. The blob shot forwards and encased the arm of the young swordsman in front of him, preventing him from pulling his sword. "Shit." He cursed silently. Harry dropped his shield and attempted to claw the black sludge off his arm, only to have his other hand become trapped. The sludge slowly drooped and slid down his arms like a liquid and covered more of his body.

"Din's Fire!" Purple flames roared to life and surrounded the black sludge, causing it to jump off of Harry. The sludge convulsed and started to take another form. Broken emerald eyes gazed at the older child. It was him before he met Shadow, who he used to be. "You bastard! You dare take my form!" Harry ripped his sword out of its sheath and pointed it at the malnourished six year old. "Die!" The sword spun out of his hand as Shadow stood in front of him, blackened sword stretched out.

"You're a foolish child, a disgrace. I'm disappointed, I thought I trained you better, yet you are incapable of controlling your emotions. The key to being a great swordsman is killing your emotions! Yet you have failed that is why-"The shadow was stopped mid-rant, Harry had thrusted his smaller, dark grey almost black sword through the stomach of his mentor.

His teacher melted away into the all too familiar black sludge and melted into the ground. Harry swiped his shield off the ground quickly and stood in a ready position. He quickly rolled to the side as the ground began to rise, and out shot a spike made from the black sludge. Multiple spikes shot up as Harry was forced to roll to dodge them all. The tip of the spikes shot towards the black-clad child in an attempt to skewer him but he managed to dive out of the way.

The black sludge melted back into one spot and reformed itself into another shape. This time it was an older version of himself. Clad in a blood-stained black tunic, dull eyes that couldn't be called emerald anymore, gleamed with a hint of insanity. His hair had turned a pure snow-white and a psychotic grin stretched wide across his face.

The fear creature didn't move, it just stood in place watching Harry with that crazed expression, taunting him. "That's not who I'll become." Harry's voice wavered slightly. The older version of himself only grinned a little bit wider, making the psychotic smile painful to look at. It could sense the fear again. "I won't turn out like you!"

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

Black dripped onto pale skin, staining it. The dull green eyes of the older man stared unblinkingly from the ground as its body fell over with a heavy _thud_. Harry's sword slipped out of his grip and stabbed itself into the ground, he panted heavily as sweat slowly dribbled down his forehead. The thing was dead and had turned back into sludge. It stopped moving and didn't look like it would again, so he assumed it to be dead, if it could die.

With a sigh Harry pulled a glass bottle out of his pockets and scooped the sludge up, before placing it back carefully. He thudded against the ground in exhaustion. "Maybe I'll sleep here for the night." The pale-skinned boy mumbled to himself quietly before falling dead asleep.

* * *

><p><em>A cold flash of steel<em>

_Blood spattered across pale white skin_

_The tips of his mouth curled up in a cruel twisted smile_

_Bodies lay scattered across the bloody plains_

_The only person left besides himself was a wizened old man in long purple robes, his once long beard cut down haphazardly._

"_Kneel before your superior." He commanded sharply._

"_How could you do this? Why would you cut down your friends, your family?" The old man pleaded for answers._

_The elder's brow furrowed in anger as the black-clad swordsman met his questions with silence. He raised a wooden stick, a sickly green color glowing at the tip "Answer me Harry!"_

* * *

><p>"Ah!" Harry gasped for air as he woke with a startled jolt shooting through his body like lightning. "Shit, it's almost noon." He cursed underneath his breath. Harry had learned to be able to read the sun's position as he travelled with the shadow man.<p>

Harry lifted himself off the ground and dusted himself before grabbing his sword and running out of the hole-littered field from yesterday's fight against the fear creature. The little clearing was filled with trees that were upturned when the creature tried to impale him. Harry dusted himself off before running off through the foliage and made his way back to his shadowy mentor.

* * *

><p>It was a couple of hours later when Harry noticed something off. He was pretty sure owls didn't fly around during sun up, or follow people for that matter. A copper brown owl flew just overhead hooting at something, he didn't know what, so it was a surprise when the owl flew in front of his face causing him to pause in his sprint. He noticed a small little rolled up note attached to its leg with red string. The owl hooted once and he stuck his arm out to let it land, only to have the owl stick the leg with the note on it out. He gently took the note off of the owls' leg, causing it to fly away with one last hoot.<p>

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc, Chf. Warlock,_

_Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

"Huh. Magic school, that's interesting." Harry muttered, flipping over the note only to see a second page.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

_UNIFORM_

_First-year students will require:_

_1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

_3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

_4. One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags._

_COURSE BOOKS_

_All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

_The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_

_By Miranda Goshawk_

_A History of Magic_

_By Bathilda Bagshot_

_Magical Theory_

_By Adalbert Waffling_

_A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_

_By Emeric Switch_

_One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_

_By Phyllida Spore_

_Magical Drafts and Potions_

_By Arsenius Jigger_

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_

_By Newt Scamander_

_The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_

_By Quentin Trimble_

_OTHER EQUIPMENT_

_1 wand_

_1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)_

_1 set glass or crystal phials_

_1 telescope_

_1 set brass scales_

_Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad._

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS_

_ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK_

_Yours sincerely,_

_Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus_

_Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions_

"Not my type of thing." School was never his thing, being bullied by Dudley every day left bad memories and impressions on him about anything relating to school, even if it was a magic school. The time Dudley and his gang tied him up and dunked his head in the toilet was one of his worst memories about school. Still nothing compared to his _Uncle_.

The letter caught fire in a flash of purple, gently floating to the ground as Harry left and continued to walk through the forest. He was getting close, he could see the triangle Shadow carved into trees so they could find their way back to their current camp.

The triangle was one big triangle made of three smaller triangles, the Triforce the shadow being called it. It could grant a wish to any who touched it, as long as the person had an equal but great amount of power, wisdom and courage. If someone unworthy touched it, it would shatter and the three pieces would find their way to the most suitable person to wield it. Power would choose someone with a great amount of strength, Wisdom would choose someone with a higher intellect than others, and Courage would find their way to someone who had the courage to go against opponents stronger themselves without a hint of fear.

Link, his mentor had said, had possessed the piece of Courage. When he pulled the Master Sword, a sword said to be able to fend off the darkness of any creature the wielder may face, the Sacred Realm was opened and Ganondorf, Shadow's ex-master, tried to take the Triforce for himself and it shattered upon his touch, leaving him with the piece of Power and giving the princess of the land, Hyrule, the piece of Wisdom. The Triforce of Courage was left with the man whom the shadow being was reflected from, Link.

Over the years the shadow man had let him know just how much he hated the man. He respected him for his strength, not any ten-year old could just pick up a sword and shield and kill giant insectoids in the Deku Tree or giant dinosaurs in caves, and electrifying parasites inside of whales. That didn't stop him from hating the goody two shoes of a man, for he was a man now, pulling the Master Sword from the pedestal from the Temple of Time made sure of that, shoving him through time by seven years.

Harry clambered up and over a large tree root that stood in his way. An engraving met his eyes as he faced a large flat stone wall on the other side of the root. The Triforce was engraved on it with the symbol of what Shadow called a "Sheikah Stone" or simply, a Gossip Stone, in the middle. The symbol was three triangles side by side over an eye with what appeared to be a teardrop falling down from the direct middle of the eye.

"Dins Fire!" Purple flames licked the surface of the stone wall, somehow not heating up the stone cold surface. The flames started to be absorbed into the two engravings and when the flames were completely gone, the symbols flashed purple before the stone wall faded away as if it was never there. Harry stepped into the dimly lit cavern. Torches lined the walls, barely giving off enough light to see. The light from outside disappeared as the stone wall faded back into existence once the black and white haired boy finally stepped through. A small smirk traced his lips as he stepped forwards, ready to show his mentor his catch.

**And that's it for now everyone, I hope you enjoyed my second chapter. **

**To Rotomknight: Shadow does not know anything about cars, I was just too lazy to write a description for a big chunk of metal with wheels.**

**I'm glad that people like this story so far! It gives me tingles on the inside. If you liked it Rate and Review! If you didn't like it… Rate and Review anyways, as long as it isn't a pointless flame I appreciate any help and ideas I can get.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Humanities Inhumanity**

"Have you succeeded?" A rough voice echoed from around the dank dark cave.

"Yes." Harry stated simply. The bottle containing the black sludge hit the ground in front of the dark specter concealed by the shadows. His mentor couldn't completely hide his presence from him anymore, not after the second year of his training.

"What is it? What type of creature have you faced?" The shadow man asked, picking up the bottle and peering into its murky depths. "A fear creature." The shadow looked at the boy in slight surprise. He managed to defeat one of those things? Even he was hard-pressed to fight off what he feared most when one of them snuck up on him a while back. The tell-tale black sludge, for that is what the creature was, seemed to gather near the lid of the bottle in an attempt to get out. "You pass." The bottle was tossed at Harry's feet as the shadow man went back into a meditative pose.

"Shadow." Harry said softly. "I received a letter on the way here from an owl." Shadow's eyebrows lifted, as if asking Harry to explain himself. "I was invited to attend a school, a magic school." The being remained in silence, and Harry shuffled nervously waiting for his response.

"What did you do with the letter?" He questioned simply, his face unrevealing any emotion. "I burned the letter. If there are really other magic users out there they may have ways of tracking people or objects."

"Good." The shadow stood up and dusted the front of his black tunic off before walking down a tunnel to the left, motioning for Harry to follow him. "Do you want to go to this magic school?" Harry trailed after the shadowy being, mind set in thought.

"It's not my type of thing, but it may be a good learning experience." He supposed, it really might be useful, maybe he'd learn more than Din's Fire, his fire spell and Nayru's Love, which conjured a barrier around him. He was set to learn Farore's Wind after he fully mastered Nayru's Love. Shadow only knew three spells, and that was all he was going to teach him. Maybe he could learn new spells and teach his mentor for a change. That was a nice thought. He shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"Not this year." Shadow told him. "Wait until you have managed to learn Nayru's Love."

Harry only nodded in response as the two pale skinned swordsmen entered an open area in the cave. Mentor and student drew their swords with a sharp sound of metal against metal before crossing swords like many times before.

* * *

><p>Two hours later saw Harry out of breath on his knees, clutching his left arm which had a deep gash extending from his elbow to wrist diagonally. Tiny cuts littered his body as he breathed ragged breaths. "Not bad." His shadowy mentor stated in his usual emotionless tone, even though he too was covered in little gashes.<p>

The pale skinned boy tightened his grip on his sword as the shadow walked calmly over to the downed child. As soon as he was close enough Harry swiped his sword in an upward slash in a hope to catch the shadow man off guard, only for the man to lean backwards slightly, cutting through the edge of the tunic. Ganondorf's ex-servant kicked him in the ribs causing him to tumble over onto his back.

"Better." Harry coughed up blood as the shadow man knelt over his beaten and battered form. "You have improved quite a bit. Two hours against me is not a small feat." The shadow man stood up and started to walk away from the downed boy. "The hunt begins in ten minutes, today is your turn. Heal up and grab your bow."

Four years ago when Shadow started training Harry, the shadowy man accidentally pushed his young charge too far and gave him a fatal injury. Without a healer the young boy could have died, so he rushed him towards the nearest town he could find. On the way there the shadow man tripped over an odd rock jutting out of the ground. The rock looked familiar for some reason and upon further inspection, the crest of the Royal Family was engraved on it.

_A fairy fountain_

His eyes widened in stark realization. Back when he was still the bloody Hero of Time's shadow he came across quite a few of them.

Needless to say, Shadow searched around for a cave of some sort around the rock and found the fairy fountain to which the fragment belonged to. The fountain was in need of drastic repair as the pillars surround the shallow pool of water were crumbling away. The fairies seemed to be well enough and weren't affected by whatever happened to this place.

The shadow man had flung the injured child into the water and watched as a few fairies circled around the young child, healing his wounds and cleansing his body of the dirt and grimed that had been caked onto his skin. The shadow being walked into the small spring and repeated the process with himself.

The shadow being had made the cave the fairy fountain resided in his home as it was very unlikely he would encounter another one. They were usually spread far apart and almost impossible to find.

Harry slowly and painstakingly removed a bottle from his pockets and popped the lid off, releasing a fairy that completely healed his wounds. He got up off the ground and dusted his clothes off before leaving the training area to grab his bow.

The hunt, Harry mused, was just a training exercise that was derived from the actual sport or necessity of hunting. It was both a necessity as Harry and Shadow needed to eat, and sport as they made a game of who could get the most game in the least amount of time. Currently Shadow was in the lead with two deer and six rabbits.

Harry sighed deeply as he admired his bow. It had been a gift to him when he completed his third year of training. The shadow had decided that swordplay wasn't enough and had him learn the art of the bow. It was a beautiful hand crafted piece of wood with a deep ocean blue handle. A metal guard surrounded each side of the handle, the top of the bottom piece had arrow indentations on both sides so Harry was able to use either hand to shoot. The bowstring was made from a beautiful yet tough silk that the shadow man had found on his forays out into the wilderness surrounding the cave. He sighed one more time before exiting the cave into the night covered forest.

* * *

><p>Albus Dumbledore only sighed as a small odd knick-knack, which was among the other little odd things littered his desk, blew out a deep red puff of smoke which covered up the previously blue smoke clouds.<p>

"Twilly." The headmaster called out into the absolute silence of his office. A loud _crack_ and a grotesque looking creature clad in a pristine white tea towel appeared in front of the elder. Its large ears hung over the front of his head as he patiently waited for his command. "Yes Master Dumbledore sir? You called for Twilly sir?"

"Ah yes Twilly. Could you perhaps fetch Professors McGonagall and Snape for me dear?" The house elf nodded in assent. "Oh and before you leave, would you care for a lemon drop?" Twilly shook her head softly. "No sir, sorry sir. Human foods make House Elves sick they do sir." Dumbledore nodded in disappointment as Twilly snapped her fingers, disappearing with another loud _crack_.

Albus only had to wait a few minutes until his two staff members were knocking at his door. "Enter." He silently waved his hand. The door opened to reveal a stern looking woman and a pale-skinned man with a hooked nose standing behind her, a scowl marring his face while a tight frown was etched on the woman's.

"You called for us Albus?" Minerva asked in a no nonsense tone of voice. He was interrupting her duties after all!

"Yes. Please do inform us what this is about Headmaster. I have certain... potions that are in dire need of a stirring." Snape said with sarcasm dripping off his tone of voice.

The Headmaster folded his hands together on top of his desk and peered over at his two staff members over the rims of his glasses. The two professors quickly became silent and straightened up at the serious glint in his eyes. "Mr. Potter has received his letter."

"Well surely that's g-"Minerva fell silent to Albus' raised hand.

"The letter was destroyed upon being received, therefore rendering the tracking charm placed upon it almost useless. We still have an approximate area he could be residing in, though he may have just been passing through the area."

Minerva seemed almost pensive as she thought through the options they held. "We would still have to check. Just in case he is in the area the letter was destroyed."

"Or you could leave him to rot in the wilderness. Surely the boy is nothing short of a barbarian by now." Severus inputted.

Albus twirled a strand of hair above his eyes thoughtfully. "Minerva, Fawkes will bring you to the sight of the destroyed letter. Severus, you will go with Minerva and provide back up in case anything were to go wrong, don't look at me like that Filius is on holidays to the Caribbean Islands for the summer."

Minerva and Severus nodded at their orders and made to leave. "Oh and before you go, care for a lemon drop?"

**Okay honestly this chapter fought me the entire time and this is the best I could do. I'm sorry it took so long to get this chapter done, and I apologize for the length as it's shorter than usual.**

**Oh one last thing. I put up a poll for this story, check it out. Peace.**

**Rate&Review**


	4. Chapter 4

**Humanity's Inhumanity**

Harry glided swiftly across the land, or he seemed to as he sprinted back to the cave, bow in hand. It was just like any other day, the shadow being that was his mentor kicked his sorry behind around in the cave, before making him hunt for their meal. Why should today be different from any other day?

The answer to that question laid in the form of two robed people, one elderly woman, the other a hook-nosed male. They trampled their way through the forest, muttering foul curses, or well the male did, the woman just looked as if she had tasted something sour.

They had said something about a "Potter" which had caused Harry to run back to the hideout in panic.

_They're onto us_

His heart hammered in his chest, palms sweaty and his forehead was dripping sweat as he rushed through the forest. Breaths came out in ragged pants as he forced himself to run even faster. Pushing beyond his limits. He almost dived into the cave opening, grazing his knees and cutting open his hands.

"SHADOW!"

Rapid footsteps echoed down the tunnel. Faster. Louder. Closer. The shadowy being ran into view of Harry. His normally unperturbed features crinkled in an unpleasant expression. Ruby eyes looked over in… concern? At the panicked child in front of him?

"What happened?" His voice washed over Harry like a waterfall. A calming, peaceful waterfall, which succeeded in calming him down.

"It's these 'wizards.' They found us."

The pale shadow could only smirk in a malicious sort of glee. He brushed his white hair back with his gloved hand, his eyes lighting up with a red fire. "Well let's go and meet these…. 'Wizards'."

* * *

><p>Minerva McGonagall cursed. Yes, cursed. She cursed this blasted forest and all the roots and trees in it. Her robe was in tatters, only so many repairing charms could fix it until the spell stopped working, her hair was out of its bun and messy, and she lost one of her shoes in a bit of quicksand a while back. The untouched greasy haired professor beside her didn't help her mood any either.<p>

Severus Snape looked like his usual daunting self. Greasy hair, hooked nose, pasty looking skin as if he didn't go outside at all. That is, until a blade found its way across his neck.

"Hello wizard." A voice breathed behind him. Severus snapped his head around, only to be prevented from doing so as the blade resting on his throat pressed harder.

"It would be a shame if I let my sword… slip, wouldn't it?" The shadow questioned. He stood at an equal level to himself, Severus noted. He was obviously dangerous, if the blade at his throat wasn't an indication.

'I didn't even hear him get behind me, or at all!'

Minerva had flicked her wand to her hand as soon as the shadow had made himself known. Pointing at the being in front of her she snapped furiously.

"Put the sword down!"

A thin line of blood trailed down Severus' neck.

"Ah ah ah. You wouldn't want your friend here to… become…. Incapacitated would you?" A smirk traced the shadows lips as he mocked the woman in front of him.

Minerva blustered in frustration at the situation she found herself in. The elderly witch lowered her wand and gritted her teeth at the man in front of her. He was spotlessly clean just like her co-worker with a sword pressed up against his neck, which only served to fuel her frustration.

He wore a plain black tunic and a brown belt wrapped around his waist, a steel buckle held the strap together. Dark brown covered his hands and feet in the form of finger-less gloves and plain boots. A black cap that barely reached his chest rested on his shoulder, barely covering the strange white hair of his. The assailant looked over to her with a dark mirth dancing in his crimson- no, ruby eyes. His eyes pierced right through her own green ones.

"What do you want?" A simple question.

Minerva straightened her tattered ivory green robes and sent back her own piercing gaze. She drew her lips into a thin line and responded with a simple answer.

"Harry Potter." Upon the shadows questioning gaze she elaborated.

"Mr. Potter was enrolled at birth to Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A letter was sent to him and was promptly destroyed upon receiving it. The Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, sent us to find young Mr. Potter and give him an introductory of sorts to the world of Magic."

"He's not going."

A look of surprise flashed across Minerva's face. This man knew Harry Potter? Was he his kidnapper? His caretaker maybe? Or did he rescue poor Harry from those awful muggles she observed years ago? Deciding to voice some of the thoughts running rampant in her mind, she asked.

"How do you know Mr. Potter, and what is your relationship with him?"

"That's none of your business woman."

Minerva opened her mouth to say something, only to snap it shut as a trickle of blood dripped down Severus' throat. The shadow being held a firm glare on the elder as the dug the sword into his neck.

"I will let the wizard go on one conditions Pass your sticks- wands- whatever, to me." He really didn't feel like going through the hassle of fighting these magic users and showing them how hopeless their situation was.

Minerva sent a piercing glare at the unperturbed being before her, before she tossed her wand at the man's feet. He roughly threw the professor in his hands against a tree and roughly patted him down before snatching his wand out of his holster. The scowling greasy haired professor clambered up to his feet and massaged his throat as he glowered at the shadow man. What right did this… this ruffian have to threaten him like that!

"Now tell me what you want of my charge." Shadowy tendrils burst from Shadow's feet, wavering in an intimidating manner. When he was satisfied with the reactions of the two magic-users in front of him he let the tendrils disappear, almost. They flickered at his feet waiting for his call of command.

Minerva started up "We would like to take young Mr. Potter to Hogwarts, where upon arriving, he will learn the magic of our world."

"And what, pray tell, can you do with your magic? Combat? If that's all then I believe you would be sorely… mistaken, if you believed my charge would accompany you to your school." The black clothed man sneered before sitting down on a felled tree. "He will learn the combat skills I teach him, and that will be sufficient to his needs."

"Not only would he learn combat magics, admittedly in the higher years, but he would learn simple household charms that would help with taking care of the house. He would also learn how to change the mass and composition of different materials while transfiguring their shape."

"Heh, no." Shadow scoffed. "While it's interesting, I don't see how much of a help changing the composition of an object will be in combat."

A devious look crossed Minerva's face before quickly vanishing. "If I can prove to you that it can be useful in combat, will you let Mr. Potter become a student at our school?"

The shadow took on a thoughtful expression. What would changing the materials of an object get her in combat? Could they dare say, turn plastic into metal? If they could, he would send Harry to Hogwarts to learn of their magic.

"And you yourself, would become one of our staff members. I daresay we need a new History teacher."

The shadow twitched ever so slightly. "Fine." He threw the woman's wand at her and motioned for her to get up. He crossed over to the other side of the small clearing they found themselves in. The Hero's shadow drew his sword and formed his shield.

Minerva snatched her wand off the ground and wiped the dust away with her tattered robes. She stood up tall, nose pointed high in the air as a scowl formed itself across her face.

"You, slime ball. You start the match between us. Count it off." Snape's scowl deepened at his commands but proceeded to count the match off anyways.

At Snape's count, Shadow rushed forwards in a burst of speed. Minerva was stunned for but a second and managed to transfigure a small bush in front of her into a thorny trap, ready to latch onto him. Shadow jumped over the waving spiked branches and slashed at the professor who managed to transfigure a portion of her watch into half a shield. Shadow smirked slightly. This magic was useful. There was only one last thing he wanted to test it with.

Shadow raised his right arm as black flames, darker than anything either of the professors had ever seen before, engulfed his arm. Shadow's ruby red eyes twinkled in sadistic glee as he threw the flames right at the elderly professor.

She widened her eyes in an unholy shock and quickly transfigured the ground in front of her to become a wall. The ground began to rise up, it rose up far slower than Minerva wanted.

"Faster!" She screamed in a panic. "Faster, rise faster!" The wall was almost complete… just a few more inches… Yes! The wall rose high enough to block the blackened flames. She took a better look at the flames when she stood straight back up, transfiguring a wall straight from the ground took a lot out of you. The flames were, quite literally, eating the wall away.

She looked up to the shadowed being who was, until a few moments ago, attacking her. He was hunched over gasping for breath as he held his side in obvious pain.

"You win. We'll go." He managed to say in between his gasps for air. It was painful for him to breathe. Every breath felt like knives where ripping their way down his throat. It also didn't help that he could feel the muscles in his arm writhing in agony and jolts of pain shot through it.

Minerva gave a soft chuckle towards the downed man. "It didn't feel like I won."

* * *

><p>The shadow entity gave a resigned sigh as he leaned against the wall. He and his young charge had spent the better half of the day in this weird alley, <em>Diagonal<em> alley or something like that. At first it was fine, get some money from the wizarding bank _Gringotts_, what kind of self-respecting bank had a name like that? Mind you the bank was run by Goblins. They got their robes from Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions. The shadow and mismatched-haired boy went to the apothecary and bought their potions supplies. It was when Harry and Shadow entered the bookstore that things went to complete crap, in the dark realm dwellers' opinion. The black and white haired shot off as soon as the duo stepped through the doors to the _Din-dammed place_.

Apparently Harry had a thing for books. No, it wasn't just a thing, it was an obsession. The eleven year old bought several other books along with his school ones. A few of the titles were _Occlumency for Beginners: How to Protect Yourself Against the Mind Magicks _and a so called fiction book, _Elemental Flames and their Meaning_.

The storekeep had been confused upon Harry's selection of books until the shadow made himself apparent as Harry's guardian. They had quickly paid for the books before Shadow led his charge into a small alley nearby.

"Don't you _ever _take that long in a store again, we were in there for _five fucking hours!" _Shadow all but silently screamed at him, making the pale boy bow his head in shame, for annoying his caretaker and wasting his time. Harry nodded sullenly.

"Let's go. We only have to get your wand."

Back to present, Shadow sighed again, the bland wall of this bland wand shop was uncomfortable. He was not impressed with the wand shop at all. The entire place was in disarray, wands left everywhere, empty boxes littered the floor, and behind the wizened old man, who was far older than he looked, there were boxes that were left pulled out, and some were empty while others held wands.

"Ah, Mr. Potter, dare I say welcome back to the Wizarding World? Though it feels like you've had encounters with magic already. Hold out your hand, no not both, your dominant one, yes there you go." Ollivander prattled on as he turned away from the black-clad boy and hurried off down the rows of shelves behind the counter. A tape measure flew off the desk with a wave of the eccentric man's hand. It was measuring between his nostrils when he came back holding a wand delicately.

"Holly wood, phoenix feather, 11 inches." Was all the man would say as he handed it gently to the young boy. "Be careful with this wand Mr. Potter, there's no other like it in this world."

As soon as the wand made contact with Harry's hand, it shocked the young wizard and sprung itself out and onto the floor. Ollivander had a frown mar his wrinkled features. "Curiouser and curiouser, by my calculations, this wand should be perfect; no other wand will work like that wind will for you. Something is rejecting the bond that would make you weapon and wielder."

Harry shook his hand as smoke from the shock rose off of his hand. "What's curious?" The wand maker only ignored him as he took a thoughtful expression.

"Ahah! That's the perfect solution!" He wrapped his spindly fingers around Harry's wrist and pulled him behind the counter. "You come along too Mr. Shadow!"

One staircase later and the three found themselves in what looked like to be some sort of laboratory. Rows upon rows of jars filled with various plants, ingredients and who knows what else made up half of the room. The other half looked like what you'd find in an old school Frankenstein laboratory.

Ollivander stopped at the base of the stairs and held his arms spread out. "Welcome to my wand creating station. You are my customer, and I shall find you the perfect wand, and if I can't find it I'll simply make it!" He laughed cheerily and plopped himself down on a chair with wheels after donning a lab coat.

"Go through the shelves on the right with the wood. Hold your eyes shut and feel for the pull guiding you to a select ingredient."

Harry did what he was told and closed his eyes. He felt deep inside himself, just like the first time years before.

_Here_

He could feel it within himself. The perfect wood.

_Closer_

Harry stepped towards the shelf. His hand reaching out, farther. Farther. There, he had it.

"Ah, Picea Mariana, also known as Black Spruce. It's a tough and hearty wood that can weather extreme cold and extreme heat, it has to be for it resides in the Boreal Forest that dwells within Canada. It's a perfect wand for one who is durable and will perform excellently with transfiguration and defensive spells, especially defensive spells." Ollivander said more to himself than the two presences in his shop.

"Now go to the other side and do the same process. This time we're looking for the core of your wand." Harry once again walked to the side of the room instructed and closed his eyes.

Nothing spoke to him. None of the cores in front of him called out to him. He was about to open his eyes when he felt it.

_H..re…_

There it was. It was coming from… Shadow?

"Shadow." Shadow raised an eyebrow in questioning as Harry's eyes snapped open, a frosty green pierced through the dark world spawn like a knife, though he'd never tell him that.

"Give me your pouch." He shrugged and casually tossed a brown pouch at the possessed looking child's feet. Harry snapped the top button off and shoved his entire into it. Ollivander looked on in amusement and curiosity as Harry rummaged through the pouch looking for something. The moment Harry found what he was looking for he pulled it out, a massive claw came out tip first.

"A Manticore's claw…" Ollivander could only whisper in amazement.

**And here's chapter four. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

**Okay guys, I have some news for you. When I first started this story I had no idea where I wanted to take it, I put up a poll to help me decide. Well I'm sorry to say I'm taking the poll down. I might put one up again where you get to decide the general direction the story goes, but for now I have the main plot-line down. And oh my, I'm quite proud of it. I came up with it and talked to a certain someone about it and we managed to hammer out a few things and these will be the only hints I will give:**

**It involves elements from a Legend of Zelda game.**

**A person who isn't mentioned a lot in LoZ will be used more frequently here.**

**I don't think this has been done before. **

**And one more thing! Look forward to an OC appearing next chapter. His name is Shawn Helprin and I'd like it if you guys and gals were kind to him.**

**Well… Tata for now!**

**Rate & Review... It makes me happy!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Humanities Inhumanity**

"A Manticore's claw…"

The wispy white haired man snatched the claw from Harry's hand. "Yes yes, I can work with this!" He murmured in amazed delight.

"Get going the both of you! Come back in at least exactly twenty four hours from now, I'll have your wand made by then." Ollivander rushed the two swordsmen up the stairs and out of the shop. "Be careful out there boys, it's dangerous- especially for you two." The cryptic words left lingering inside their heads as the open sign on the door was flipped to the closed side.

* * *

><p>Harry looked up to the shadow being with a questioning expression. The shadow tilted his head slightly to the side and walked off, Harry trailing behind him. They continued walking until they reached a grungy looking offshoot of an alley leading away from Diagon Alley. Knockturn Alley, Shadow had heard this was a place where one could find themselves… darker items.<p>

Shadow led the preteen down the dank alleyway, looking for a shop that stood out. The alley was almost completely empty, which Shadow presumed was due to it being midday out. There were abandoned stalls against walls and beside buildings. A few people, wreathed in dark cloaks, wandered the streets and some pilfered from the absent stalls.

Harry looked on in disgust as he passed by the buildings. This place was filthy, didn't anyone here know how to clean up? He took a small sniff and almost gagged as the vilest scent assaulted his nose. Shaking his head to rid himself of the smell, he almost ran into the shadow being who stopped abruptly.

His piercing gaze bore into a little shop between two bigger ones. A wooden multicolored mask without eyeholes had spikes jutting out from it. It was attached to the place, suspended over the door. The building itself was the same grey stained with dirt and grime as the rest of the buildings surrounding it. Shadow pried the door open, it was stuck with disuse, and eased his way inside, his charge following along.

The place was small. There was a bookshelf, a desk with items laid across it, and a counter with a warty faced witch snoozing in a chair behind it. The shadow entity glided across the rotting wooden floorboards and checked out the bookshelf. Several books caught his eye, and he snatched them up before slamming them on the counter. The witch woke up with a sharp yelp and fell off of her chair.

Grumbling, she made her way back up. "Ugh, now what can I do you for? Heh, get it? I'll do ya. Heck, I'll even make it free." She put on what she thought was a seductive face as she took a closer look at the man before her. "I'm not too fond of the young'uns, but I'll make an exception for you, _handsome_."

Shadow's face twitched in minor annoyance and he roughly shoved the leaning woman back into her seat, he would not allow her warts to touch him. "Don't touch me whore. Ring up these books, I'll give you your money, and we can part ways. Don't test me, skank."

Foul curses and swear words were hurled at the impassive entity as she rung the books up. Curious glances were sent towards him as she read the books he wanted. "Hidden Lands – A Record, the Myth of the Sword of Light, and Muggle Wars and the Magicks in play? What do you want these books for?" She asked him… well, demanded of him, with a few more curses added in for her pleasure.

"None of your business, _woman_." He tossed four galleons and seven sickles onto the counter before he made his way out of the shop, Harry gave the old woman a disgusted look before running off to catch up with his mentor.

* * *

><p>Shawn Helprin followed after his father into the giant castle before them. It was a magnificent castle, Shawn thought. It was made of white marble that seemed as if it sparkled in the moonlight. Four thin towers cascaded shadows over the main part of the castle and Shawn stared in amazement that something made of stone could rise that high.<p>

The ten year old boy sped up when his father harshly told him to move faster. He bowed his head in shame and fiddled with the brim of his plain olive pants. The relationship between father and son was a sad sight to see for the professor giving the tour around the Hogwarts grounds. As they continued the tour inside, the professor took a moment to examine the child. The boy was obviously malnourished, he was ten and yet he looked like an eight year old would. The olive colored pants he wore were a size too big, and the beige shirt he wore was barely any better, the sleeves were supposed to reach his mid-forearm yet they reached past his hands! Professor Filius Flitwick wasn't sure but he believed that the boy was wearing something that was restricting him, and when he caught sight of heavy black bands that dangled off of his wrist, his suspicions were only given further proof. Filius's thoughts were thrown aside as the Headmaster greeted the trio with a warm smile and a twinkle bright in his blue eyes.

"Good afternoon Filius" The Headmaster nodded to the half-goblin professor as he strode towards the trio. "Headmaster." Filius nodded in response as the wizened old man stopped in front of the professor and visitors.

"Headmaster, I would like to introduce you to Mr. Gary Helprin, and his son Shawn." The half-goblin wizard introduced the two with a respectful tone of voice while glowering slightly at the father.

"Ah yes, our new Defence professor. Albus Dumbledore, and might I be the second to welcome you to Hogwarts, as Filius no doubt already has." Dumbledore twirled a few strands of his long white beard before holding his hand out to Gary, who shook his hand.

Dumbledore leaned over slightly towards the child of the quartet. "Hello there child. Aren't you a little young for Hogwarts?" Shawn backed away from the elderly man and shuffled slightly behind the Charms Professor as he answered quietly. "My dad told me I'm capable enough of starting my first year here. He even says I'll be better than all of the first years." Shawn's face was bright red as he spoke with downcast eyes.

A faint frown crossed Dumbledore's face before vanishing as quickly as it appeared. Wouldn't want to make his father uncertain as to whether he suspected anything. "You'd make a fine Gryffindor, my boy." Taking that as his leave, Albus turned around, his robes sweeping across the ground as he walked away from the dumbstruck father and son.

* * *

><p>Finally! It was the day he would be making his trip to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry wouldn't admit it, but he was excited, just a tiny bit. He looked down at his new wand, it was a glorious piece of wood, completely different from anything he had seen before, even those other wands in Ollivanders' wand shop. It was 11 ½ inches and it was shaped like a cylinder that looked as if it had bits removed and smoothed over, and it was completely black. The most defining feature of the wand though, was the handle. A six inch sea blue marble claw which had leather melded into the marble resided at the base of the wand. The leather served to give the hand more friction when holding the wand.<p>

Harry boarded the train alone, his mentor was already at Hogwarts, and proceeded to walk down the hall looking for an empty compartment. He walked past a few of them, one had a bushy haired girl talking to a black haired boy, and another held a red-head who was looking up and down the hallway in search of someone, there was another that held three boys looking into a cardboard box for some reason. The last compartment Harry looked into was empty. He sighed in a holy relief and threw his trunk underneath the small table attached to wall.

Moments after the dual-haired boy sat down a small knock sounded on the compartment door. Upon opening the door, a small boy who was a foot shorter than Harry looked up at his expressionless features.

"What do you want?" Harry asked as a scowl marred his face. It wasn't that he didn't like the kid, from first appearances, it was just that he wanted to have silence while the train brought all the students to Hogwarts.

"Um, would I be able to share this compartment with you?" The boy had his eyes downcast as he continued on. "Everywhere else is full." Harry gauged the boy carefully, scrutinizing every detail about him that he could before agreeing to his request.

"Yeah, sure. Don't make too much noise and we'll be fine." The boy followed Harry inside the compartment and sat on the opposite seat from him and began to twiddle his fingers as he gazed out the window at the rapidly passing scenery. Trees whipped by too fast for the swordsman to tell what kind they were.

The quiet boy was different than the rest of the other boys that he saw on the platform back at the train station. He was extremely withdrawn, never even glancing at the other person in the compartment, not that it offended Harry. The child had thick messy blonde locks which had lost its luster and fell to his shoulders, but his eyes were his most defining feature. They were light blue but as the colour got closer to the pupil, the darker it got, becoming almost black. Three dark spots surrounded his pupil in a triangle formation.

Harry pulled a book out of his trunk, _Majora's Tales of the Other World: A Hyrule Story_. The shadowy being had bought him the book after they picked up Harry's wand. The shadow had to go back to that weird shop with the mask sign to pick up something he especially ordered for his new class that he was going to be teaching, and while Harry was wandering around he found this book, and asked for the dark world being to get it for him. The Shadow had made a comment years ago about how the land he came from was a place called Hyrule, and Harry had wanted to learn about it ever since.

Harry was still on the first chapter and was reading about the Hylians, the human-like race of their world, except they had pointy ears like elves. The Hylians had a few goddesses that inhabited their world, which would explain his mentor's odd way of swearing. Din, the Goddess of Power, Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom, and Farore, the Goddess of Courage. They were the three gods that created the world and that also created the mythical Triforce.

Harry began to read about the first recorded legend of the world, where a Demon Lord called Demise had risen up and was terrorizing the land-dwellers. A courageous young man by the name of Link had taken up sword and shield against the demon lord and had managed to fend him off while the Goddess Hylia evacuated the past Hylians and ripped the earth itself apart, forcing the Hylians and the Triforce into the sky, and created a cloud barrier preventing the Demon Lord from obtaining the mythical power. The Goddess then shed her Godly form and became the first Princess Zelda in history. It is said that from then on that every female born into the royal family had magical powers and was named Princess Zelda. It is unsure as to whether or not that each and every Zelda that was born held the reincarnated soul of the Goddess who offered her Godly form to one day use the same Triforce that she hid from Demise, as Godly beings could not touch the Triforce.

Harry peered over the top of his book at the boy in front of him. He was still staring out the window at the passing scenery. It was becoming dark out, Harry realized absently.

"What's your name?"

The boy looked up at Harry in surprise. He wasn't expecting the dual-haired boy to speak to him since he said not to make a sound. Besides, he had his nose stuck in a book ever since he entered the compartment.

"Shawn. Shawn Helprin." The ten year old muttered quietly. He kept his eyes firmly locked onto the floor and fiddled with the brim of his seat.

"Harry." The black-clad swordsman offered in response. "How old are you? You don't look like your eleven."

Shawn's eyes flickered up to Harry before falling again. "I'm ten."

Harry nodded as if he understood and offered his hand to the shy child. "It's nice to meet you Shawn."

The blonde cautiously shook hands with the strange boy in front of him. Who had multi-coloured hair? He thought. Shawn smiled slightly as he relaxed his tense hand into the pale preteen's hand.

Harry introduced the younger boy to a game of exploding snap, a game he picked up back in Diagon Alley. The food trolley came by and Harry bought a bunch of food for the both of them, from the looks of it Shawn needed it. Eventually it became pitch black out and a voice rang out through the train telling the students to put their robes on.

"It says we have to have them, not that we need to wear them." Harry had said when Shawn questioned why the older boy didn't put his robes on. Shawn shrugged and pulled his off, not liking how constricting they were.

The train pulled up into the Hogsmeade Station and all the students got off the train, Harry and Shawn being the only ones not wearing robes, earning them a few odd looks. As they followed the other students to who knows where, he heard a loud voice booming in front of them.

"Firs' years! Firs' years this way! C'mon the lot of ya, over here." The first year students, including Harry and the ever so silent Shawn, walked towards the giant of a man calling them.

"All o' ya get a boat! No more 'n four ta a boat!" The duo walked over to one of the empty boats and were soon joined by the bushy haired girl he saw earlier and the boy she was with.

"All righ' off we go!" And with that command, the boats sailed off into the lake. As the giant of a man started talking about the lake they were on, the Black Lake, the bushy haired girl introduced herself.

"Hermione Granger, and this right here is Neville, Neville Longbottom." She stuck her hand out brashly, to which Harry took and shook. "Harry, and that shy person over there is Shawn." Shawn nervously shuffled around and looked down, while Neville just blushed and scratched the back of his head.

"Are you Harry Potter?" Hermione questioned as her eyes caught sight of the lightning bolt scar on his forehead that just _refused_ to completely heal. No matter what, his wounds had healed despite any injury that has been dealt to him. He knew that wasn't normal, and that it was because he was closer to his magic than other people were, according to a lecture Shadow had given him.

"Why do you ask?" Harry's expressionless face quickly formed a scowl as her eyes lit up in delight. A large smile threatened to split her face as she stared at the boy in front of her in awe.

"Oh my goodness, I get to meet THE Harry Potter! In person!" Granger squealed excitedly and almost tipped the boat over with her enthusiasm. Neville attempted to calm the squealing girl down but barely managed to.

"Why am I so important? What do you know about me?" Harry demanded from the girl, venom coating his words. Hermione quickly lost her enthusiasm and quickly adopted a frightful expression.

"D-don't you know?"

"Know what!"

Shawn and Neville gazed in slight fear at the overwhelming presence that was Harry as he gritted his teeth in anger.

"That you defeated You-Know-Who when you were a child and became famous all across Great Britain as the Boy-Who-Lived." She stammered out as Harry slowly calmed down as the girl told him what she knew.

"No. I didn't know. I haven't lived in a town or city since I was seven years old. Nobody told me anything. If you know anything else that involves me tell me. Now." Harry told the girl as he sat back down and relaxed into the boat seat. "I'm sorry for getting frustrated, but I have no idea about anything in my past, and I want answers."

He was talking about why he was placed with the abusive Dursleys. He wanted to know who put him there, and if random people on the side of the street knew his name better than himself, of course he would demand answers. He wanted to know his past.

Shawn looked at the swordsman in slight fear along with the other two. He scared him witless, but he was kind to him on the train, and didn't bully him because he was younger and smaller than the other kids like a few of them did before he found Harry's compartment. Shawn slowly and carefully placed his hand on the white and black haired boys shoulder and gave him what he felt like was a reassuring smile.

The rest of the boat ride was spent in silence, until Hogwarts came into view. It was beautiful, a shimmering white castle made of marble stone that towered high into the sky. The children, minus Shawn who has seen it before, gasped in astonishment and amazement. The Helprin child just stood there awkwardly as the people around him seemed as if they just stilled, besides him and the giant of a man. The boats came to shore and the giant led the children up pass the gates and towards the front doors of the magnificent castle, pointing out things like the Herbology Greenhouses, the Forbidden Forest, and his hut.

Three loud booms sounded against the stone doors as the man banged his fist on it. Slowly it creaked open as an uptight elderly looking professor opened it. Professor McGonagall eyed the eleven year olds plus Shawn, before turning to speak to the man.

"It's nice to see you Hagrid. Is this all of the first years? The group seems rather small this year." She gave the newly named Hagrid a rare smile as he answered back.

"Tha's all o' em professor. I reckon you shoul' take em now, I have ta go feed Fang before he breaks out an' scares the students again." Hagrid bowed slightly to Minerva and walked towards his hut through the sea of students.

"Follow along." Professor McGonagall said to the students before turning on her heel. The students took a second to wonder what to do, before they followed the strict looking professor.

She led the students inside to the doors of the Great Hall. She abruptly stopped and faced the students.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. Now, in a few moments you will pass through these doors and join your classmates, but before you take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now while you're here, your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you points. Any rule breaking, and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup."

Minerva McGonagall eyed the students once more before she opened the doors to the hall. There were four tables, each with their own banner raised above them, and a multitude of students at each table. Harry could only guess that they were the second to seventh years, watching to see which house would get which student.

Minerva led the students up the middle of the hall, towards a table raised above the rest. This was where the teachers sat. Right in front of the teachers' table was a wooden stool, with a dusty old had placed upon it. Harry observed the hat and was surprised when its brim opened and it sung a song.

_Oh you may not think I'm pretty,_

_But don't judge on what you see,_

_I'll eat myself if you can find_

_A smarter hat than me._

_You can keep your bowlers black,_

_Your top hats sleek and tall,_

_For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_

_And I can cap them all._

_There's nothing hidden in your head_

_The Sorting Hat can't see,_

_So try me on and I will tell you_

_Where you ought to be._

_You might belong in Gryffindor,_

_Where dwell the brave at heart,_

_Their daring, nerve, and chivalry_

_Set Gryffindors apart;_

_You might belong in Hufflepuff,_

_Where they are just and loyal,_

_Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_

_And unafraid of toil;_

_Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,_

_If you've a ready mind,_

_Where those of wit and learning,_

_Will always find their kind;_

_Or perhaps in Slytherin_

_You'll make your real friends,_

_Those cunning folks use any means_

_To achieve their ends._

_So put me on! Don't be afraid!_

_And don't get in a flap!_

_You're in safe hands (though I have none)_

_For I'm a Thinking Cap!_

Everyone clapped in respect to the hat as it mock bowed before once again falling limp on the stool.

"Now, when I call your name you will come up and place the Sorting Hat on your head, and when it calls out your house you shall take your seat there." McGonagall called out before she started reading names off of a scroll.

Hermione Granger went over to the Gryffindor house when she was called up and cheerfully walked over to the clapping house. She beamed in pride as a few of the students clapped her on the back.

Shawn was called over to the Ravenclaw house and shyly walked over there while the reserved house gave a polite applause.

Neville took a long time to get sorted, but he eventually was sorted into the Gryffindor house along with Hermione.

It was when Harry was called up that the entire Great Hall fell into a dead silence.

"Harry Potter!"

**Aaaaaaaand that is it for chapter five! This is currently my longest chapter to date, and I hope you have enjoyed it greatly.** **So say hello to Shawn because he will play an important role in this story, but I'm not going to tell you how important he will be. You can guess that by yourself.**

**Oh and anyways, I have started up a YouTube channel, if any of you are interested here is the link to my intro video.**

** ? v = M**

**Just add that onto he end of the and you'll get the video, dont forget to take away the spaces. I'd like to apologize in advance for my awkwardness. I'm pretty new with the whole recording thing and it will take a while for me to get used to it.**

**Well anyways. I wonder if any of you can guess what I'm going to do with the plot in the next few chapters. I gave a few hints I believe, well, some pretty big hints. **

**Well, I'm off now, have a good day everybody.**

**Rate & Review…. It makes me smile.**

***edit* sorry, i went and fixed a few things in the story, they were pretty unnoticeable but they were bothering me**


	6. Chapter 6

**Humanities Inhumanity**

Hushed whispers echoed across the silent hall as the dual-haired boy walked to the ragged cap, and stool it laid upon.

"What's with his hair?"

"Why isn't he wearing his robes?"

"Is that _really_ Harry Potter?"

Harry tried to block out the whispers but to no avail. When he finally reached the hat, he sat down and placed the worn cap on his head, frowning when it fell over his eyes.

_Hmmm… a very strange one you are, yes?_

"_I assume you might be the hat?"_

_Of course I'm the hat. How else do you think a hat is supposed to sort students? _

"_I didn't expect a hat to sort students at the beginning."_

_Prepare for the unexpected boy, especially when magic is involved. Tell me, where do you see yourself being sorted into?_

"_Isn't it your job to sort us, hat?"_

_Not exactly, while I have my own knowledge, I am your personality given voice. In theory I should be able to sort you with ease, but therein lies an unexpected problem that Godric did not forsee when creating me. Everyone can be cunning as a snake, as loyal as a dog, as intelligent as an eagle, and as courageous as a lion. I reflect who you are, it's your job to choose who you will be._

"_I see, and you expect me to decide for myself?"_

_That is correct._

"_Very well. I choose-"_

"-Ravenclaw!"

The entirety of the student population, including teachers minus Shadow, sat in stunned silence. Wasn't the precious Boy-Who-Lived supposed to go into Gryffindor, the House of the Brave? A few claps broke the silence, and soon the Ravenclaw table burst out into loud applause, some students hooting and hollering as they unexpectedly claimed their saviour.

Shawn smiled slightly into his sleeve as Harry sat down beside him, happy his new friend would be in the same house as him. The swordsman gave him a smirk in return.

"Looks like we'll be rooming together." He said in his friendliest tone of voice. Shawn was about to reply when the headmaster stood up and called for attention.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, welcome back second through seventh years. I would like your attention for a few moments as I have some news to announce before you begin your dinner. I would like to welcome two new professors this year, Professor Helprin and Professor Shadow. Professor Helprin is taking over the Defence against the Dark Arts position while our other professor, Professor Shadow will be taking over the History of Magic position. Professor Binns had finally realized he died and quickly departed over to the next life. Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has banned a few more items from school grounds, if you would like to see the complete list, it will be posted on his office door. Now eat up, partake in this delightful feast we have provided for you and fill your bellies up."

Harry and Shawn looked on in amazement as the previously empty dishes were filled with delicious looking foods. Harry took some turkey while asking Shawn to pass him the mashed potatoes. Shawn passed his friend the potatoes and decided to go a healthier route and procured some vegetables and some pork tenderloin. When Shawn looked at Harry's plate it was almost three times the size of his.

"Terry, Terry Boot." A hand found itself in Harry's face as he started on his bacon. He looked up at the brash boy and gave a glare that set the brown haired boy's nerves on fire.

"Harry. Just Harry." He shook Terry's hand, and gave a tight squeeze before letting go and returning to his food. Terry opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Harry.

"After I'm done eating. I just discovered this delicacy called… Shawn what is this thing called?" The quiet boy beside him muttered a small "Bacon." Before withdrawing into himself due to the sudden question.

"Yes, bacon. I just discovered bacon and would like to finish it off. If you would like to talk to me, wait until I have finished."

Terry gained a sheepish look as he scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, sorry about that. I was just really excited." He sat back down and continued to finish off his plate of food. As everyone ate their meals, they examined the two new professors at the table.

Professor Helprin was not wearing his robe, like Professor Shadow and the two boys at the Ravenclaw table. Instead he wore a dark grey patchwork shirt with sleeves that ended at his forearms and a light grey fur vest that reached the middle of his back before stopping. His tracks were just regular old black track pants and he wore black sneakers. A bladed staff was strapped to his back and a smirk lingered on his face, as if he knew he was better than everyone else, even the headmaster.

Harry presumed that he was Shawn's father, and asked Shawn, who quietly confirmed his suspicions. He didn't like the man from first appearances and would be sure to keep an eye on him at all times, though the staff was pretty interesting. The rest of the people around him, mostly third-year Ravenclaws, made comments on about how cute the new Defence professor was. Of course, many of the girls also thought Shadow was cute as well, hearts almost forming in their eyes as they caught sight of his dark and mysterious features.

Once everyone was done eating the headmaster rose once more. He swept his arms out before him and spoke. "I hope you found the feast to your liking, and may every one of you be suffering from a full stomach. I have one last thing to say before all of you children head off to bed for tonight. Our new History professor would like to bring a certain select few, hand chosen by him, on a historical field trip to Magical Japan. I'm sure that most of you don't know this but, many many years ago, there was said to be a pathway to another world. Only one person had ever walked through this pathway, only to never be seen again. This man was called Majora, and he was a bright young man in his own right. I remember him clearly, he was the headmaster before the Headmaster before me! Headmaster Armando Dippet was his apprentice and soon after his master left, he took over the Headmaster role, but I think that's enough of a History lesson for today. Your new professor would like to bring you to this historical place, and I have agreed upon one condition, the students selected will have to raise the funds for the trip on their own. One last thing, the students will have to be in their seventh year."

Out of the corner of Harry's eye two red-headed boys started to excitedly chat amongst each other, no doubt planning on how to become one of those students.

"Off you trot." Dumbledore's voice rang out across the noisy hall, demanding silence. "Prefects, you are to show the first-years where the dormitories are." He ordered the eight students, two from each house. Prefects were the student's connection to the house heads, but break one of the rules in front of them and they could hand out punishments and take away house points.

The prefects gathered the first year students and lead them up the moving stairs, explaining that they were enchanted to head to the direction the student desired to go. The two older students led the group of eleven year olds plus Shawn, to a door with an eagle head knocker. Upon the approach of students, the eagle asked a simple riddle.

"What loses its head in the morning and gets it back at night."

"See? As I was saying, the knocker will ask you a riddle, depending on which year you are in, and to gain entrance to the common rooms you must answer it, or wait for someone else to come and help you." The older male had stated.

"A pillow." He waved the students to follow after him and showed them around the common rooms. The prefects explained the rules, the times to be in bed at, and had told all of them to be on time for study sessions, as everyone had to be there, with exceptions of course. The female prefect explained how there were two students per room, and how they were to respect each other. If any problems were to arise, the student could input a request to change rooms with another student.

"Excuse me." A small voice squeaked. The students all looked to where the voice was coming from and was surprised to see a short squat man that was smaller than even the first years, walking into the common room. "I would like to speak to Mr. Potter and Mr. Helprin. The rest of you can carry on."

The students wondered aloud as to what the professor needed them for while they wandered off to their rooms as the professor brought the two first years over to a couple chairs in the corner of the room.

"Now boys, do you know who I am?" The professor asked the two first years.

Shawn nodded slowly as the short man was his tour guide a couple days ago. Harry simply nodded emotionlessly. Obviously this man was their Head of House. Professor Filius Flitwick had a serene smile on his face as he looked over the two robe-less students.

"Now boys, I'm sure the letter that was addressed to the both of you stated that robes were required." The short half goblin peered at the boys over the rims of his glasses, a twinkle glimmered in his eyes as he wondered what their response would be.

"Professor, the letter only said we had to be in possession of robes. Nowhere on it did it say we had to be wearing them at any time, other than big events involving the presence of other schools." Flitwick sported a small grin as the dark clothed boy explained his loophole to the professor.

"Very good Harry. First day in Ravenclaw and your already finding loopholes. I remember figuring that one out halfway through my first year myself!" The professor hopped out of his chair and clapped happily. "I hope you two enjoy your time here at Hogwarts!" He said joyously as he left the common room.

Harry and Shawn walked up the set of stairs to the male dormitories and found out that they would be sharing the same room. Upon entering the shared room, they were greeted with a plain room. A single bed resided at each end of the room, two oak bookshelves that covered the entire back wall, an oak desk beside the head of the bed, curtains that could be pulled to surround the bed, and a few shelves. It was quite safe to say that their room was perfectly symmetrical.

Harry walked over to the bed to his left and reached for a handle underneath his bed. It was the trunk he had left on the train. "That's interesting…" Harry muttered to himself softly. The dual haired wizard pulled a few books out of his trunk and began to place them on his bookshelf. Shawn walked over to the older boy, and began to help him, sorting the books alphabetically. Harry shot the younger boy a smile in thanks as they continued to put the set the books in silence.

* * *

><p>It was an hour later when both boys found themselves finished putting the books away. The bookshelf was half full, and Harry intended to make sure it was completely full by the time the year was up.<p>

The swordsman laid down on his bed in exhaustion. Today was a tiring day, not physically, but mentally. He walked through a brick wall, saw a giant man, talked to a hat, his professor looked like one of those goblin things from Gringotts, and the entrance to the common rooms had an eagle head for a handle. Weird, even by his standards.

A small flashing made itself known and prodded Harry out of his thoughts. Upon scanning the room for the source, he came across Shawn playing with what looked to be a squiggle on the wall beside his bed. Every time he pressed it, the light would turn on or off.

"What did ya find there Shawn?" Harry asked the younger boy, amused at the facial expression of awe plastered on his face. Shawn realized how childish he looked and hid his face from the older boy, red tinting his face.

"It's a rune… for light." He said embarrassedly and quickly hid underneath his blankets. Harry searched the wall beside his bed and quickly found the rune. He pressed it and a light shined out from the rune.

"Ah! I get it. It's for reading, as if it were a lamp." Harry exclaimed. Shawn looked on in surprise. _'Did it really take him that long to realize that?' _

"Um… I realized right away…" Shawn's voice was muffled through the blanket, but Harry understood what he said.

"Ah… You must be quite intelligent then." The smallest amount of praise made Shawn light up a complete tomato red as he stammered out a thanks. "T-thanks. I-I'm not that smart though." He pulled the blanket around himself tighter and squeezed his eyes shut due to his awkwardness.

"Nonsense. You're just as smart as anyone else in this castle." Harry was out like a light before Shawn could respond. "Maybe." Before he too fell dead asleep wrapped in his blankets.

* * *

><p>"I just can't get this stupid matchstick to change!" Harry muttered angrily as he threw the stupid matchstick back onto the table. Shawn, who sat beside Harry, had already changed his matchstick into a perfect needle. "What in Din's name am I doing wrong?"<p>

Shawn peered over at the rather angry dual-haired boy and decided to finally give him a little bit of advice. "Um… Just… Imagine the matchstick turning into a needle in your mind's eye… Don't force it… Will it…" He inputted nervously.

Harry looked at the boy in a bit of shock. He hadn't even thought of it that way. The swordsman gave the shy boy a smile in thanks, and promptly transfigured his matchstick into a needle.

Minerva McGonagall was watching the mixed class of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff transfigure their matchsticks for the first time, and was pleasantly surprised when Shawn, the shyest boy of the entire class, transfigured his first. She had promptly awarded him ten points and kept a careful eye out for anyone else who had managed to complete the assignment.

Harry Potter was someone who she thought would go far in any aspect of magic that he put his mind to. Sadly, Harry didn't seem to have an aptitude for transfiguration at all. He had thrown his matchstick onto the table rather violently and seemed as if he were about to give up, when Shawn. Shawn of all people, whispered to him. Harry's next attempt was flawless. It looked like she might have been right the first time.

* * *

><p><strong>Aaaaaaand that's it for now! This chapter isn't that long, only making it past 2500 words, which isn't too bad in my opinion. Um, so yeah, I realized I can't post links in my story which sucks, so I'll just tell you the name of my channel and hopefully you'll be able to find it, if you want to find it. I'm not forcing anyone.<strong>

**SweetNSalty is my channel. I have about 9 videos out, and 19 subscribers. I'm quite awkward so… yeah.**

**Anyways, I'm having trouble coming up with scenes for this story now, writer's block really sucks. So if any of you have any ideas, just pm me or leave it in a review and I'll credit any scenes I may use/twist for my own benefit.**

**One last thing. How does a beta reader work?**

**Rate & Review!**


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